2017 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
“_______ Women Matter.”
Saturday, April 8th, 8:30 am – 4 pm
Carnegie Mellon University, Doherty Hall
8:30 – 9:30 AM: Registration, Doherty Hall 2210
9:30 – 9:50 AM: Opening Remarks, Introduction to the Conference, Doherty Hall 2210
10:00 AM – 10:50 AM: SESSION I
A. Paint By Numbers: Grappling with Gender in the Arts
Gowri Sunder, Junior, Carnegie Mellon University
Sinead Foley, Junior, Carnegie Mellon University
Gender, race, sexual orientation, and other identity markers are frequently politicized, breaking complex
individuals down into categories or turning their existence into a political symbol. This show exhibits visual and
performance art as well as written works by Carnegie Mellon students that wrestle with gender and identity.
The works in this show deal with the complicated, nuanced reality of how gender and identity intersect and play
out for real people in the real world. The show will also feature a round table discussion with the artists open to
the public where the creators will discuss their work and process and the joys and challenges of creating art
around these issues. Through the roundtable we hope to bring together creators and audience members from
different disciplines around campus who may not normally interact in a space dedicated to focusing on gender
and its intersectionality to help foster discussion and collaboration in the future.
Location: Doherty Hall 1209, Second Floor
B. Standing at the Intersection: Self-Care and Marginalization
Noah Riley, Health Promotion Specialist, Carnegie Mellon University
Self-care is an important skill in improving or maintaining one’s mental health and well-being, and it is now a
buzzword that has picked up a lot of steam in social justice circles and beyond. But what does self-care really
mean, and what are the implications of promotion self-care through an intersectional lens? In this workshop, we
will explore the intersections of marginalization and one’s ability to perform self-care. Participants will walk
away thinking about new ways to support themselves and others in their communities in performing self-care.
Location: Doherty Hall 1211, Main Floor
C. Men, Feminism, and Intersectionality
Aaron George, Coordinator of Community Standards & Integrity and Housefellow, CMU
Nick Wilson, Student, Carnegie Mellon University
It is vitally important for men to advocate, advance, work towards, and perpetuate the feminist movement.
However, men identifying as feminists comes with some important considerations to understand. This session
will explore how men who identify as feminists need to know about the intersectionality of feminism in order to
call themselves allies to the feminist movement.
Location: Doherty Hall 1217, Main Floor
D. Black Abortion Vs. White Feminism: The White Sanction on Black Autonomy
Natalie Cargill, Sophomore, Slippery Rock University
Abortion is very much a racialized issue, from limited access to reproductive healthcare services for low-income
people, a group which disproportionately includes Black women, to the demonization of Black women who seek
out the procedure versus the celebration of white women who are “making the right decision.” This session will
examine discrepancies in how Black and white women experience reproductive autonomy, are regarded and
treated during and after the abortion process, and the ways in which they have been excluded from
reproductive activism to argue that this series of cultural framings of Black abortion reinforces racialized sexismand implicates white feminists in the process.
Location: Doherty Hall 1112
11:00 – 11:50 AM: SESSION II
A. LG vs. B: The Erasure of the Bisexual Community
Victoria Bernard, Doctoral Student, Adler University
According to a recent student, out of 9 million LGBT people in the United States, 52% identify as bisexual.
Although bisexual people are over half of the community, they face disproportionate levels of poverty, violence,
suicide, and discrimination compared to their lesbian and gay peers. This presentation will focus on the impact
of discrimination and erasure on the bisexual community and how to better support bisexual people through
advocacy, research, and programming.
Location: Doherty Hall 1209, Main Floor
B. Women and Climate Change
Athena Motavvef, Heinz College, Carnegie Mellon University
This presentation will explore how climate change disproportionality affects women, particularly women of
color and those in low-income communities. We will discuss the effects of climate change and discuss possible
solutions to alleviate this issue.
Location: Doherty Hall 1211, Main Floor
C. Women in Mechanical Engineering Matter
Olivia Roy, Student, Carnegie Mellon University
Across many universities, engineering students synthesize what they’ve learned throughout their degree while
completing an open-ended design project in a group in a capstone course. Within engineering education
research, students completing this course are often observed and interviewed in order to gain insight about the
behaviors of marginalized students and their participation in groups. However, engineering education
researchers are observing group dynamics and social interactions from the perspective of an outsider. In this
presentation, I present my reflections and observations as a woman in engineering during the course of the
Mechanical Engineering capstone class at Carnegie Mellon University.
Location: Doherty Hall 1217, Main Floor
12:00 – 1:30 PM: Lunch + Keynote Address by Angelica Ross, Doherty Hall 2210
1:30 – 2:00 PM: Resource Tables + Reflection Time
2:00 – 2:50 PM: Session III
A. “I Don’t Need Rescuing”: How Princess Leia and Carrie Fisher Taught Us to Resist
Lina Spotts, Metadata Specialist, Carnegie Mellon University
This session will focus on the impact of the character Princess Leia and the effect she had on society, particularly
that of young girls and women. We will also discuss how Carrie Fisher, outside of her role as Princess Leia, made
an impact on women with regards to self-image and mental health.
Location: Doherty Hall 1209, Main Floor
B. Women In Leadership: Can We Shrink the Gap?
Colleen Libertz, Academic Advisor, Carnegie Mellon University
This presentation will discuss the women’s leadership gap and the lack of representation of women in executive
positions, government, and college administration and faculty. We will discuss the challenges that women face
in becoming leaders and how we can help shrink the gap for women to become leaders. Participants will have a
chance to assess their own leadership styles and think about how their styles may affect their ability to
overcome challenges in become a leader. We will also discuss leadership gaps among women of color and the
LGBTQ+ community.
Location: Doherty Hall 1211, Main Floor
C. Angry Black Women Matter
Camille Moore, Public Policy and Management Master’s Candidate, Carnegie Mellon University
“The most disrespected, most unprotected, and most neglected person in America is the black woman.” Do the
words of Malcolm X from 1962 still ring true in 2017? Together we will explore the history of the “Angry Black
Woman” stereotype in America and its legacy on American culture. Police brutality, missing persons, the racial
wage gap, and many more issues disproportionately affect black women and those they intersect with. We will
deconstruct the historical validity of the “angry black woman” stereotype in pursuing the American Dream, and
her historical erasure from social and political movements.
Location: Doherty Hall 1217, Main Floor
D. The Veil on Muslim Women in Mainstream Media
Stephanie Schnupp, Sophomore, Slippery Rock University
The lack of representation of Muslim women in mainstream media constitutes an erasure of the population in
modern society, and often leads to misrepresentation upon that basis. The website Muslima cites a study which
found that 91% of worldwide articles in national newspapers about Muslims were negative (2007). It is
estimated that Muslim people make up at least 1-2% of the U.S population, approximately 3.3 million people –
enough to constitute a media presence that is varied and representative, but that is rarely the case. I borrow this
idea to argue that the erasure and misrepresentation of Muslim women in western media constitutes its own
epistemology of ignorance, a production that not only constitutes, but also enables misrepresentation in/as
forms of sexism and the fostering/reinforcement of Islamophobia. The prevalence of this ignorance leads not
only to stereotypes of Muslim women being “terrorists” or understanding them primarily in relation to the
extremist group ISIS. As people, we need to interrogate the implications of this erasure, challenge and revise the
biased ideas about Muslim women circulated in the media, and support opportunities for them to create their
own narratives in society.
Location: Doherty Hall 1112, Main Floor
3:00 – 3:50 PM: SESSION IV
A. Othering Women: A Global Perspective
Jess Mulcahy-Miller, 2nd Year Master’s Student, Division of Global Affairs, Rutgers University-Newark
International Organizations (IO’s) and Non-profit Organizations (NGO’s) across the globe engage in vital work
that seeks to address serious human rights issues throughout the world. Many of these organizations utilize the
stories of women to ‘raise’ awareness over a variety of human rights issues. However, many of these stories are
used without the consent of the women they claim to be ‘helping’, and often cause more harm than good.
Rather than being inclusive and empowering, the use of these narratives reinforces the ‘othering’ of women,
especially women from non-westernized countries. Women are then forced to only exist within prescribed
identities such as ‘the victim’ or ‘the mother’. The various identities that women hold is denied and their stories
are coopted as a method to gaining global political edge and clout. This presentation will deconstruct how these
narratives are built and used, and critically analyze the ‘othering’ that happens to women globally. Further, this
presentation will seek to engage participants in how we, as social justice workers and educators, can combat
this in our everyday work.
Location: Doherty Hall 1209, Main Floor
B. Harriet Hosmer: Pushing Boundaries Through Sculpture
Erin Dempsey, Junior, Slippery Rock University
In the nineteenth century, opportunities for women artists were restricted and opportunities for women to be
sculptors were incredibly rare. The medium was considered off-limits due to its more masculine associations. In
this paper, I argue that Hosmer defied the established gender stereotypes regarding sculpting not only by
becoming a successful sculptor, but also through her subject choice. Hosmer followed the popular neoclassical
style of the nineteenth century but did so in a way that rebelled against traditional depictions of women.
Location: Doherty Hall 1211, Main Floor
C. Somatoformation: A Diagnostic Journey Through Bio-Medical Assumptions and Patient
Suffering
Riley Reffner, Sophomore, Slippery Rock University
Society is a standardized unit. These standardizations generate expectations regarding human
behavior, intelligence, body size, and functionality that then create an ideology of “normality.” The
social rules and general standardizations are comforting for those who can adhere to them, and social
norms can create order and a recognizable status quo. If there are expectations to abide by, then
people will usually know what to do and how to behave. However, standardization also produces
disability and stigma in specific, embodied ways which can damage those who not adhere to these
norms. In my paper, I use my own history as a case study to examine how social norms can be more
disabling than disability itself.
Location: Doherty Hall 1112, Main Floor
D. Heteronormativity: When “Straight” is Way Too Narrow
Kennix Lee, Student and Peer Health Advocate, Carnegie Mellon University
LeShaun Jones, Student and Peer Health Advocate, Carnegie Mellon University
This presentation aims to convey what heteronormativity is, how to recognize it, and how to address it. We will
look at today’s media and societal norms and pinpoint how they are inherently exclusive of certain sexualities
and gender identities. By exploring the way we talk about these subjects, we can identify our own biases and
foster skills that challenge these biases systematically. Participants will identify the biased language they may
use when talking about sex, sexuality, and gender identity and learn to adopt a more inclusive way of
communicating.
Location: Doherty Hall 1217, Main Floor